"Damn it! What are those law enforcers doing? So many people can't even stop a few Fire Manipulators, and they let them come after me?!"
"Pu Wen's plan is useless! He's just an armchair strategist, a waste of space!!"
"Damn... damn!!"
"The Bai Qi order is gone, the ring is gone! I'm really going to die this time!!"
Yan Xicai ran wildly up the hill with all his might, cursing as he ran. He didn't dare to look back, fearing that if he did, his head would fall to the ground like the others... He didn't want that, his head was too valuable.
In his haste, Yan Xicai stepped into empty air and tumbled down the hill like a ball.
Mud and debris covered his body as he was spun around dizzyingly. When he finally managed to regain his senses, his body had slammed heavily onto the ground.
Pain came from all over his body, and he groaned as he opened his eyes. The gray sky that had not changed for hundreds of years pressed down on his head like lead... Yan Xicai tried to sit up, but failed.
He had multiple fractures all over his body. Forget about standing up, even the slightest movement caused intense pain.
Yan Xicai had never experienced such pain. He could only lie on the ground like a corpse, his chest panting... A misty white vapor drifted in the air, and his heart was filled with despair.
He was really panicked.
He was afraid that he would really die in this ancient tomb, and then he would lose everything... His revenge plan, his business assets, he had worked so hard to be born into such a good family, and who knew what kind of poor wretch he would become in the next life?
Rustling sounds came from one side.
Yan Xicai's heart instantly jumped to his throat. He widened his eyes and stared fixedly at the sky not far away. He was afraid to see the demonic face of Number 10, because that would be his doom.
Contrary to his expectations, it was not Number 10... but a face he was somewhat familiar with.
"You?!" Yan Xicai opened his eyes in surprise.
It was a young man with a scar on his face, walking with a limp... It was Jian.
"Quick! Take me away from here!" Yan Xicai was overjoyed and immediately spoke up, "Carry me! If I can get out alive, I promise you can continue to be a law enforcer! And you'll have food and clothing for the rest of your life!"
Yan Xicai couldn't walk, but he could let Jian carry him. As long as he could leave this place, find a place to hide, and wait until the ancient tomb opened again, he would survive!
Jian looked at Yan Xicai's huge body and, after a moment, slowly shook his head:
"Sorry, Yan... I'm a cripple."
Upon hearing this, Yan Xicai's voice suddenly stopped.
Yes, Jian was a cripple, a person who had difficulty walking on his own. How could he possibly carry Yan Xicai and escape the pursuit of the Fire Manipulators?
Thinking of this, the slightest glimmer of hope that had just arisen in Yan Xicai's heart instantly vanished... He looked at the ugly and gaunt Jian, unable to suppress the resentment and anger that welled up from his heart. He stared with bloodshot eyes and cursed:
"Damn it... Fucking damn it!!!"
"We're at this point!! And you're still a waste of space!! A waste of space!!!"
"My life is in your hands, your prosperity and wealth are in your hands! You can't even grasp them yourself!! Why did I have to bring a burden like you?! Can you do anything right?! I really hit the jackpot of misfortune!!!"
Yan Xicai was completely broken. He didn't expect that his promising life would end up ruined by a cripple... He was now filled with regret. Why did he recruit this waste into the law enforcers? He should have beaten this waste and his father to death with clubs back then!
Jian lowered his head and let Yan Xicai scold him. Under the gray sky, his eyes gradually turned cold.
The humiliation he had suffered, the humiliation his father had suffered, everything flashed back in his mind. He looked at that ugly and ferocious face, and his fists uncontrollably clenched tightly...
"You're just like your father! Both of you are wastes of space! If my father hadn't given him a meal, he would have..."
"Shut up!!"
Jian roared and directly straddled Yan Xicai, punching him in the cheek!
Yan Xicai's voice suddenly stopped. He stared blankly at Jian, whose eyes were fierce. After a long silence, he spoke incredulously, "You dare to hit me? You dare to hit me..."
"I hit you, so what?" Jian suddenly punched him again, one blow following another.
"Do you think it's amazing to be born into a good family? What makes you so arrogant? My father was recruited by your father based on his own abilities. Who do you think you are? Dare to scold him? My crippled leg was caused by your drunken beating. If it weren't for you, would I be in this situation?"
Jian's fists were hard, honed from years of doing heavy work. He punched Yan Xicai recklessly, leaving the latter unable to say a complete sentence.
It was only when Jian got tired that Yan Xicai, whose face was covered in blood, could catch his breath. He stared at Jian fiercely, his eyes filled with rage.
"You dare to hit me! You're doomed!"
"I'm doomed?"
Jian sneered. He suddenly pulled out a short knife from his waist and stabbed it into Yan Xicai's lung!
"Who's doomed??"
Yan Xicai screamed in pain, and blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. "You dare to kill me... Your whole family will die..."
"I killed you? Who can prove it?" The coldness in Jian's eyes grew even more intense. "A Fire Manipulator混入 the ancient relic of the Martial Path, wreaking havoc and killing. Is it strange that Yan Xicai died?"
Upon hearing this, fear emerged on Yan Xicai's face. He looked at Jian's grotesque scarred face in disbelief, as if he was seeing him for the first time.
Jian pulled out the short knife and frantically stabbed it into Yan Xicai's body. The knife went in and out, becoming more and more crimson. Blood flowed along it onto the gloomy ground, and a pool of blood gradually submerged the two of them.
Yan Xicai's life was draining rapidly. He wanted to stop Jian, offering resources or promises to buy his life, but he couldn't even say a complete sentence at this moment.
"Xiao... Jian..." Blood gushed into Yan Xicai's throat like a spring, and he spoke indistinctly.
"My name is not Jian."
Jian grasped the handle of the short knife with both hands and lifted it high. Those eyes that had always been filled with humility and ingratiation now showed unprecedented bloodlust for the first time.
"My name is Jian Changsheng!!"
Puff——!
The blade suddenly pierced through Yan Xicai's throat.
Yan Xicai's body suddenly trembled and then collapsed completely on the ground... without breath.
Jian's chest rose and fell violently. The corner of his mouth, splattered with blood, unconsciously curved upward. An unprecedented sense of relief and clarity surged into his heart, as if a nightmare had been broken and everything was embracing a new beginning!
At the same time, above the thick clouds, the foundation of the Martial God Path lit up!
"At this time, someone is still recognized by the Martial God Path?"
Seeing this, No. 8, who was pursuing Pu Wen, suddenly stopped.
He looked at the black ribbon extending from the foundation and falling towards a nearby hill. A faint light shone in his eyes!
The plan to attract the attention of the Martial God Path by accumulating murderous intent on his own obviously wouldn't work anymore. If they wanted to steal fragments of the Martial God Path's foundation, they had to start with someone else's divine path... and this divine path was too close to them. If they went now, they should still be in time!
Without hesitation, No. 8 gave up pursuing Pu Wen and rushed straight towards the black ribbon hanging from the sky...
...
On the edge of the hill,
A figure in red witnessed Jian's brutal murder of Yan Xicai and raised an eyebrow.
A faint smile curled at the corner of his mouth.
"Interesting..."